Tweeting up the votes

On the polling day of every phase, Modi unfailingly tweeted that everybody must vote. PTI Photo
That silvery, almost spectral, vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi
promising a “New India”, beamed live on television screens and
circulating endlessly on social media, defined not just the personalised
nature of the BJP campaign, but its highly mediatised nature. It
recalled the 2014 general election campaign which changed forever
political media use and messaging in India. Many of these strategies
emerged from Modi’s personal understanding of how media power can be
harnessed in a totalising way that intermeshes every media platform and
info-tech tool. The level of sophistication he has brought to the use of
social media far outstrips that of any political leader in India and,
possibly, that of all but a few internationally.
Here, let us consider how Twitter was deployed. The basic template,
first used in the 2014 campaign, continues to be in place. The major
difference is that Modi’s own presence on Twitter has grown
exponentially, with followers having gone from 5 million in mid-2014 to
27.5 million today. Even after accounting for fake ids and bots, this is
a huge number, the population of a small state. True, these followers
are geographically dispersed, but a significant number would constitute a
fairly homogeneous political community committed to Modi’s politics
and, as in the real world, draw strength, content and ideological
endorsement from each other. Every tweet that goes out to this universe —
favourited, retweeted, hashtagged and taking root on other media
platforms — has infinite lives.
What was conspicuous about the 500-odd tweets, in both Hindi and
English, put out between January 1 and March 8 was their perfect
synchrony with the election campaign’s changing contours. Although
generated by a professional team, they appeared intuitive and intimate
and aimed singularly to tweet up the votes. Consider the way each Modi
rally was transported from its geographic location to the virtual space
through strategic tweeting. As each phase kicked in, images of
overflowing crowds created the impression that “everybody” was on Modi’s
side. This was designed to create the classic bandwagon effect where
even those not on board clambered on for fear of isolation.
Occasionally, for additional credibility, someone else’s comment on the
size of the crowds was retweeted, like Joy Chowdhury’s observation in
late February: “Did anyone see the sea of humanity @rally in #UP? Surely
an undercurrent flowing which pollsters missed.”
On the polling day of every phase, Modi unfailingly tweeted that
everybody must vote. A March 4 tweet went: “This is the sixth phase of
the elections. I appeal to all voters to partake in the festival of
democracy with enthusiasm, voting is a must.” This was a general
advisory in keeping with Election Commission (EC) specifications that
there should be no soliciting of votes on voting day, but the coded
message to vote BJP was unmistakable. To drive the point home, there was
also the retweeting of images of supporters who had voted, a tactic
first deployed in 2014. Alok Kumar Dubey tweeted a picture of himself
with two pals, holding up inked fingers with the text: “Today we cast
our vote… Everyone voted for BJP.”
In 2014, selfies were big in the BJP campaign. This time too, there
was a focus on youth-friendly subjects like sports and info-tech. When
the digital app, BHIM, was launched in January, Modi tweeted, “BHIM App
has made transactions faster and easier, thus making it popular among
the youth.” It received 13,781 likes, with Chintan Thakkar tweeting:
“Sir, BHIM app is one of the best gifts you have given to India in the
journey of digitisation. Thank you.” Those drawn into the conversation
were sometimes even younger. Modi retweeted Adyasha Kar’s words: “Had
heard your #for students before my 10th and again before my 12th boards.
Thank you for motivating and being with us.” When a schoolboy tweets
thus, it would indicate a long-term strategy of priming future
generations.
The broadcasting of ‘Mann ki Baat’ during the election period was
controversial. It was only on condition that he stuck to non-election
themes was clearance given. Yet, in a frenetic election season, even
innocuous statements on “nari shakti” gain electoral wings. Care was
taken to avoid overtly communal statements this time and there were no
tweets of the shamshan-kabristan variety. The appeal to Hindu
sentiments, however, was unambiguous. Just as he had done in 2014, Modi
began his campaigning with a visit to Tirupati’s Sri Venkateswara Swamy
temple on January 3, a day before election dates were announced. The
last phase too was busy with images of temple visitations, ending with
his prayers at the Somnath temple on March 8. Even as voting was on in
eastern UP, he tweeted: “Jai Somnath.”
It touched an immediate chord. Siddharth Pai, for one, came back with
“Har Har Mahadev… like Sardar Patel reinstated Somanath temple. Wish
you rebuild majestic ram Mandir in #Ayodhya.” The way in which the
Somnath-Ayodhya temple connect could be so emphatically established
would indicate that Modi’s tweets, while not appearing to polarise, were
in fact remarkably effective in doing so. Their virtuality in no way
undermined their viscerality.

Everything was thrown into these tweets, from budget promises and
visits of foreign dignitaries like the Portuguese PM, to random
observations on “hardworking farmers”. They coalesced the images of Modi
as PM/fighter of corruption /friend/benefactor/indefatigable campaigner
into that of “Modi, the Saviour”. The Pied Piper call of “sabka saath,
sabka vikas” sounded from every mobile phone, flattening out the
political terrain.
This carefully constructed multimedia panopticon is more successful
than anything conjured up by old-style political propaganda, because of
the ownership that is vested in it by the recipients of its messaging.
What we have left is a political landscape shorn of an opposition, a
politics rampant with majoritarian impulses, and a public discourse
devoid of counter voices.The writer is a senior journalist

Map of L K Advani's Rath Yatra of 1990

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